Golden Cauliflower Soup

It’s not exactly soup weather in Austin yet. The temperature is still annoyingly hovering in the high 80s, and the stack of (super cute) sweaters I bought a few weeks ago sits on my shelf, mocking me and the life choices that brought me to the land of perpetual flip flops and the (questionable) glory of swimming holes.

But that doesn’t mean that I can’t eat soup.

In fact, I’m eating my soup so defiantly, I’m eating it for breakfast. Soup in the a.m. is an easy, cheater way to get extra vegetables into my belly, and it’s a good stand-in for coffee or tea: it’s comforting, warm, cozy, and bonus! it gets eaten instead of drunk. (‘Cause being drunk that early in the morning would be a bad way to start the day.)

optional garnishes:

Directions:

1

Wash and core the cauliflower, then coarsely chop. Set aside.

2

Heat a large, deep pot over medium-high heat, then add the coconut oil. When the oil is melted, add onions, carrots, and garlic. Stir with a wooden spoon and cook until they’re soft and golden, about 5 minutes. Add the chopped cauliflower and cook until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.

3

Add the broth and water, then bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook, covered, until the vegetables are very tender, about 45 minutes.

4

Working in batches, carefully transfer the cauliflower and some of the broth to a blender or food processor. Cover the top with a dish towel to protect yourself from splatters, and purée the cauliflower until smooth, adding more broth as necessary.

5

Pour the purée back into the soup pot, then add the salt, pepper, and coconut milk. Stir to combine and cook over medium until heated through. Serve immediately with garnishes, or store covered in the refrigerator. To reheat, warm the soup gently over medium-low heat until bubbly.

NOTE:
I tried adding herbs and spices during cooking, but got the best results when I kept the soup plain and added seasonings at the end as garnishes as recommended above. I also experimented with chicken broth, beef broth, water, and different combos of all three for the base of this soup; the hands-down winner was beef broth. The versions made with chicken broth (and celery) ended up tasting too much like gravy. (If you’re looking for a healthy gravy you can ladle over chicken or turkey, cut this recipe in half, add a stalk of celery with the carrot/onion and use all chicken broth for the liquid.)

I don’t put my recipes through nutrition calculators because even though I track macronutrients, I don’t do it for individual recipes.

This is almost ALL vegetables, so I figure a cup of soup is roughly equivalent to a cup of cauliflower. There’s 1/2 cup of coconut milk, so if you divided the soup into, say, 6 servings, that would be 1/6 of a 1/2 cup of coconut milk, which is pretty minimal fat… roughly 4 grams of fat.

Anyway. That’s the scoop on this soup, but no, I won’t be included nutrition info with recipes.

Cauliflower soup in virtually any form is amazing. I make one with home made chicken stock (bone broth) & bacon. I puree most of it but leave a few smallish chunks. It’s a dead ringer, flavor wise, for my old childhood favorite campbells bean & bacon soup. (except without all the toxic gick)
Eriko

Cauliflower is naturally pretty sweet — that’s why most people like it 😉

You might try sticking to recipes that use “darker” spices with some heat, like chili powder, for example. Roasting and caramelizing the cauliflower — like this recipe and my cocoa-toasted cauliflower in Well Fed — actually heighten the sweetness, so less cooking might work better for you.

Thanks for the recipe! I now know what I am making with the head of cauliflower in the fridge. I recently got your new book and I have to say great recipes, great photo’s and great layout. I’ve really enjoyed reading it and making mayo, chocolate chili, creamy cucumber salad and more. I look forward to your next book!

Thank you for this delicious recipe! I just whipped it up while prepping my food for the week. I had a bunch of broccoli stems so I threw them in for some extra veggie goodness and it is delicious 🙂 Your cookbook is becoming my paleo bff!

In the interest of giving back, I actually made butternut squash soup today! I used chicken broth, the squash and a little coconut milk. I added about a tablespoon of sunbutter and seasoned with curry powder. It really turned out nice. It’s cool and wet here, so this will be the next soup I make!

Ran across this luscious little number this morning. I was already planning on making Diane Sanfilippo’s Quick & Easy Salmon Cakes for brunch. What an amazing pairing! Topped the soup with Penzey’s Tsar Dust, red hawaiian sea salt and fresh parsley. I swear my hubby and I were making little piggy noises while we were eating!

This recipe is fantastic!! When I made the soup I decided I wanted it to have a little bit of heat on it, since the flavors are very warm. It was great with a heaping teaspoon of red pepper flakes. I also add a bay leaf to the vegetable mix when it was simmering to give it more depth of flavor.

It makes such a great base to add anything to it. I’ve added sausage & herbs, chicken & avocado… the possibilities are endless.

Hey Mel
Ever try an immersion/stick blender? I got one last Christmas and I swear it is amazing. I still have faint black bean soup specks (pre-paleo days!) on my ceiling from using a regular blender and NOT cooling the mixture before whirling it. Cuisinart’s stick is so easy to use and clean.
Jacqui

I haven’t tried one because I just really don’t want to add another appliance to my kitchen. My blender is such a workhorse, and I love it. But between soup and mayo, the argument is pretty strong for an immersion/stick blender. I just can’t with any more kitchen clutter 😉

I made this last week and really liked it. I had enough left over for two smallish bowls so I wanted to add something to make a little more substantial lunch/dinner. I added some diced ham and let me tell you, that was awesome! The sweet cauliflower with the salty ham was just perfect!

This soup was delicious! I made it for company and they ate every drop. I just started the paleo diet recently and am loving it (although I’m a vegetarian, but one who eats eggs and fish)because of recipes like this one. The sunshine sauce is AMAZING, as is the “world’s best stir fry sauce.” Your Well- Fed cookbook is the only one on my kitchen counter right now; I’m having a ball trying the recipes, and haven’t found anything we haven’t loved yet. Thanks!

I just made this recipe and it is so delicious! I am sick as a dog today and I this soup was just what I needed. Thanks, Mel, for what you do and for sharing your recipes with the world. I for one am very grateful. 🙂

You should always only use the canned coconut milk — the kind in the carton often includes sweeteners and other weirdo ingredients. For canned, the only added ingredient should be guar gum, and sometimes you can find it without, and that’s even better. Enjoy!

This was seriously easy and delicious and will be great for breakfast! Thank you so much for tinkering with and perfecting all of your recipes before posting them. It’s great being able to go to your site and know that whatever recipe you post will be a winner – exactly as is. I am loving all the soups lately.

Yes THANK YOU for posting the chicken broth note. I now have a gravy idea for later and will at least not wonder forever if I could just be using my larger supply of chicken broth for this soup. Will definitely use beef broth when I want this as a soup!

Cold dreary weather, a head of cauliflower that demands attention today, carrots and onion on hand, and the last of my homemade chicken bone broth found lurking in the freezer — and your recipe for one amazing batch of Golden Cauliflower Soup. Its really good! (I didn’t even add the coconut milk). I added, however, some turmeric to my individual bowl which I really enjoyed. Tummy and gut are always pleased with the very soft cooked veggies. Heart and soul are always pleased with the comforting deliciousness of soup. Thank you for the inspiration today! – Laura Jo, Anchorage, AK

Just found out I have to do the AIP for Hashi’s. So thankful for your tracking your progress and what you had to eat at meals. I just made a big batch of this soup and am putting some in the freezer to pull out for ease this week.

Thanks for the great recipes! This soup tastes so creamy and yummy. I ended up forgetting to put the coconut milk in it, but it still tastes wonderful.

I always use canned coconut milk. The kind that comes in the carton can contain added junk and sugar. When choosing your canned brand, if you can find it without guar gum, that’s awesome, but if not, no biggie. The only ingredients you want, however, are coconut milk and guar gum.

Totally enjoyed your interview on balanced bites! A lot of good things shared. I am in recovery from chronic fatigue syndrome. It has totally made my life crazy. For the last three years I’ve been living with whoever will take me in, But somehow still manage to eat good food.
The last place I lived had the Cuisinart stick blender. I agree! It totally rocks! It might be my favorite kitchen tool also. I made this soup today with the crummy stick blender that someone gave me. It still turned out fab! The family I live with want the recipe.
I also like what you shared about switching up flavor profiles, and also what you shared about looking great but still being unhealthy.
Thanks for sharing your genius!
Suzanne in Boston

I had about 3/4 of a head of cauliflower in the fridge but I really wanted to try this soup today because it’s a cold and rainy day and I’m getting a head cold.
I also had an avocado that was to the point of needing to be used RIGHT NOW, so I tossed it in the Nutribullet with the cauliflower so that I’d have enough purée to put back in the stock.
SO. GOOD.
I garnished with nutmeg, bacon pieces and pecan pieces.
I definitely made it fattier, but hey, I’m sick! 🙂

I made this soup for lunch today. I added some curry powder and chili powder because it was just a little bland for me and it turned out amazing! So amazing that I gave my nine month old some bites (because he always wants whatever I am eating of course) and he loved it. This soup will definitely be going into rotation at my house… even after I’m finished with my whole 30!

I love this recipe! I started my Whole30 a week ago and am loving using the four week plan on your site. I think it will be easy to keep doing cook ups and paleo friendly meals after the Whole30 is done. Thanks!

Your website is a lifesaver. I am starting the Whole 30 this Monday. I started it 1/2 way last week by doing research and trying your methods to accommodate them to my schedule. The hot plates have been a lifesaver, as have the sauces. I also made myself a Thai sauce to drizzle over any hotplate, making an instant Thai treat! All the best!

Thank you so much for this and all the recipes. I’m just digging into WF2, but WF has been my dog eared kitchen companion for ages. Fave paleo cookbook! 🙂

This is simmering now (I’m tempted to put it in the instapot because I’m hungry!) and tomorrow I’m making your carnitas and testing out some of your new meatball recipes! You make paleo so easy for us!

My husband and I started Whole 30, 44 days ago…With the help of your recipes, we’re still going strong.(I must say, before this I was a sugar-holic…and still can’t believe I could follow this idea )But, after feeling so great, we didn’t want to quit. We’re making this great tasting soup tonight, our 2nd time… Thanks for all your efforts!! Just got your “WF2”,book as a gift for my hubby!! We are loving your recipes!!

This was delicious. I used an immersion blender to puree the vegetables – too lazy to haul out the food processor and then clean all the bits. Next time I might just add the whole can of coconut milk and reduce the water.

Yummy – and perfect soup for the snow storm sitting on top of VT right now.

I usually make a batch of soup and freeze it for lunches – but I’m not sure this one is going to make it to the freezer…

Thanks for this recipe Mel! I was getting sooooo tired of eggs in the morning, so this soup is a wonderful addition to my breakfast rotation. I am having it RIGHT now with a sausage patty. So. Good. And so great that its Whole30 compliant! Thanks!

Made a double batch of this tonight for my family (dinner tonight and lunches tomorrow). Also put a pork roast in the crock pot all day and then shredded it and put it in the middle of each bowl of soup…..Delicious! My husband and three kids (14, 12, & 4) loved it. I tweaked the recipe a little, added the entire can of coconut milk (since I doubled the recipe) and used less salt and pepper then the recipe called for, like I said, it was great. I look forward to making your sweet potato soup in a few days. Thank you for the recipe.

Tried this because I need something faster for breakfast, and liked that suggestion. But we sampled tonight and love it. This soup made me think of a wonderful recipe I have for cream of parsnip soup, which I would love to make W30 compliant. My big hiccup is that it calls for a large boiling potato–I assume for thickening or just making it nice and smooth.. Can you suggest a substitute? There is nothing else that needs to be changed. Well, except the cream; but coconut milk will fix that.
Thank you for all your wonderful recipes.

If it’s a blender soup, you could probably skip the potato and just reduce the amount of liquid a little. You can use the proportions of the cauli soup as a guide — or email me the recipe, and I’ll figure it out for you.

I made the soup and it was great. Added diced chicken and almonds for a complete meal. Can you tell me how long it is safe to eat after making it? It has been in the fridge for 5 days. Thanks. Day 17 of Whole30!

Happy Whole30-ing! If you’ve had it in the fridge for 5 days, you probably should finish eating it today. In the future, you could put half a batch in the freezer if you have trouble eating a whole bunch within 4-5 days. Enjoy!

I made this recipe for dinner the other night, and it was scrumptious! It was my first foray into actually cooking a vegetable-based Paleo dish, rather than just eating raw veggies. This soup was so deliciously creamy and filling. My husband, who is very picky about soups, absolutely loved it!

Love love love your books (have both Well Fed and Well Fed 2) – they are so awesome. I just was reading up on this page of your website (and all the comments), and had to laugh at the fact that earlier you said you didn’t want more kitchen clutter (Oct 2012) and yet in Jan 2015, you said, “I always use my immersion blender” ! So ‘grats on getting one, and it appears you like it. 🙂

I’ve never been a huge fan of soup, but this recipe intrigued me since I love cauliflower. This is seriously the best soup I’ve ever had! I just finished off the last of my batch for lunch. It’s great just as it is, or with a little ghee on top, or topped with crumbled bacon. Delish!

Also, I just recently discovered your site and all of your wonderful recipes. I have now made several of them. Thank you for all you do! You really have made my meals so much easier and more enjoyable!

This soup was amazing! I didn’t think I would ever say that about anything with cauliflower as the main ingredient- it was always “ok” at best…. But I followed your recipe exactly and was pleasantly surprised by the results! 🙂 even my husband that doesn’t like cauliflower had it for breakfast and dinner today! Lol. I start my whole30 on the 15th and this will def be on the menu! Looking forward to trying your other recipes too!

I really want to make this–it looks delicious! But I’m trying to do the Whole 30 plan and all the beef stocks seem to contain small amounts of sugar or soy and some even say they contain wheat. What type of beef broth do you use?

When I’m doing the Whole30, I usually end up making my own broth because I haven’t found a commercial brand yet that doesn’t include some sugars. Pacific Organic is really good and pretty clean, but it does include some sugar, I believe.

Love this soup, perhaps even more than zucchini soup! One of the best ways to 1) start the day, 2) consume vegetables. I dumped some slow cooker pork shoulder into it and chowed down. Yum! Also, I’ve become addicted to making bone broth in the pressure cooker: so fast and just as good as the slow cooker (perhaps even better). Nomnompaleo has a recipe for pressure cooker bone broth as well (:

Sometimes the coconut milk has solids in it because the water separates from the coconut meat/fat. It *should* melt when you put it in hot soup. If not, the coconut milk might be “off.” There should be no solids once the coconut milk gets hot.

I have made at least 3 of your recipes and all have been great. We recently made the chocolate chili and it was awesome. I was really looking forward to this soup and it was a disappointment. I had to really spice it up after it was ready, added freshly grated nutmeg, quite a bit more salt, some smoked paprika and more pepper. it wasn’t terrible, but at best just OK. We ate some sausage along with it and found adding it to the soup add a bit more flavor. I may try again adding some apple or something, but as it is written, I would not make again.

I made this for the first time last night and I can’t stop telling EVERYONE how amazing it is! I was floored! It’s soooo flavorful and peppery and creamy. My favorite healthy recipes are the ones that don’t taste healthy. It’s giving my Whole30 LIFE this cold cold January. THANK YOU! 🙂

Delicious and filling! I made a batch two days ago, and it was gobbled up so fast that I made another bigger pot today. I noticed that it took longer than 5 minutes to brown all the cauliflower, but everything else went as stated. I like the idea of having it for breakfast or having a small bowl with dinner. Is there no end to the wonders of cauliflower?! Thank you for the great recipe.

Will this still be ok if I use water instead of broth? I’ve looked everywhere for compliant broth and had no luck. I was hoping to make this without having to buy broth, but I understand it might not be as flavourful.

Update–I went ahead and did it. It’s ok–obviously, it’s less flavourful because I didn’t add broth, but it’s not terrible. I accidentally added a whole can of coconut milk (it had separated and plopped all out).

I personally thought (because of no broth) more salt was needed. I experimented with adding some cayenne pepper to just one bowl, and that was good too. I don’t have any nutmeg, but I agree that it would be perfect with this soup!

This the first recipe that I have tried of yours and it was so delicious that I just had to come leave a comment. My daughter who is not a fan of soup is on her second bowl! I’ll be making a double batch next time. Thank you!

Hi Mel, I just wanted to say thank you – it’s day 29 of my first Whole30 – something which does not seem to be as well-known here in Sydney, Australia. Your recipes have been a god-send. Easy and so yum. My work friends have been jealous, and I’m pretty much just going to keep eating them on a regular basis. Thank you! 🙂

I absolutely love this soup. However I just bought an Instant Pot (pressure cooker) and I am a total newbie. I really want to make this soup in the IP but I don’t know how to adjust. I’m excited your carnitas recipe had the IP modifications since I make that constantly but can anyone help me with this recipe? Melissa? I looked through comments and don’t think that it’s been answered. Thanks!

Thank you! That’s funny because that is the recipe I found and adapted for your recipe. 🙂 It worked great! I, however, was slightly nervous that I would blow up my house with my tweaking. Just finished leftovers for breakfast. Thanks again for the response. I can’t wait to try your carnitas in the IP.

Another winner!! Oh my! and YES to this recipe. I’m definitely adding this soup to my favorites. I suspect that I may end up adding all of them. But this is certainly easy, delicious, and lunch friendly for work. And it’ll definitely become a breakfast favorite and the silky gingered zucchini a late night favorite.
Thanks so much!

About how many cups of cauliflower florets would you say are used in this recipe? (I have a huge bag of frozen cauliflower.)
I absolutely loooove your recipes, and am so looking forward to trying the ones from Well Fed Weeknights!! 🙂
Thanks in advance for your reply.

I still love this recipe, especially to get my veggies in during breakfast. It’s so nice to have a warm cup of soup on a cold NY morning! I am now making this in my Instant Pot and blending with my immersion blender right in the pot! It’s such a good shortcut.

Hi Casey! I pretty much do everything as directed in the recipe up to adding the liquid to the pot. Then I closed up the Instant Pot and set it to 10 min on high pressure. When it’s done, I release the pressure,, purée it all with my immersion blender, add the coconut milk, salt, and pepper, purée a little more and I’m done! I have even used frozen cauliflower because I’m lazy. ☺️

I’m trying to make the switch back to Paleo, with the added bonus of cooking for a dubious toddler and husband too. We all loved this, and my picky toddler, who usually turns her nose up at vegetables, scarfed this down! I didn’t bother with the puree since the pieces are easier for her to grab.

I made this recipe from your WellFed2 cookbook and it was fabulous! I used Veg Broth as I’m prescetarian and it was absolutely delicious. I ate 3 helpings at once – so good! my go to recipe!
Quick question – my friend can’t have Coconut – could she substitute cream for the coconut milk as she eats dairy?

Can’t wait to try this! One question – and I may have missed if it was already asked – has anyone tried chicken broth instead of beef? Wondering if it will significantly change the flavor profile?
Love your cookbooks, love your blog! And I love your posts about Prague – will be traveling there with my daughter for a school trip in the spring and so we are enjoying hearing about life there!

Hey, Traci! There’s a note at the end of the recipe where I explain the different approached I tried. Short answer: Chicken broth makes it taste like gravy. Here’s the full note:

NOTE:
I tried adding herbs and spices during cooking, but got the best results when I kept the soup plain and added seasonings at the end as garnishes as recommended above. I also experimented with chicken broth, beef broth, water, and different combos of all three for the base of this soup; the hands-down winner was beef broth. The versions made with chicken broth (and celery) ended up tasting too much like gravy. (If you’re looking for a healthy gravy you can ladle over chicken or turkey, cut this recipe in half, add a stalk of celery with the carrot/onion and use all chicken broth for the liquid.)